The Wire’s Marlo: An Iconic Villain with a Terrifying Message

[@thetake]

WATCH MORE - Another iconic Wire character who was about his "business" is Stringer Bell. Here's our TAKE on cold blood personified: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oKGWfKyQmcmShcU

[@aryankaushik93]

Please don't use dramatic background music. It's cheesy

[@EliteWokiesNonEliteRichHuhlolz]

@The Take I just came away mystified by the pronunciation of Dostoevsky

[@AngelRivera-vh7bz]

Your facts are not completely right in fact, you need to really be a fan and not some culture vulture trying to understand when you really don't SMH btw Snoop was introduced at the rim shop, garage part to be exact and that's where Marlo spoke about how Barksdale is weak and not dealing with the ammunition he possesses, you're just doing this for money you culture vulture SMH

[@BrianD9000]

Make more videos about the Lawyer Levi, and another on Dee

[@ianm1462]

“You want it to be one way, but it’s the other way.” That line has lived in my head for 20 years. Perfect delivery of a chilling fact

[@raymondsims7042]

One of the best lines ever without question

[@CC3GROUNDZERO]

Same. It's been there since I first heard it.

[@rainbowjeremy-t3v]

but it makes no sense lol. this phrase has no meaning.@@CC3GROUNDZERO

[@MrCobbsalad]

@@rainbowjeremy-t3v you just don't understand it's meaning.

[@rainbowjeremy-t3v]

nope. it haves no meaning. if it has meaning explain it @@MrCobbsalad

[@jameslawrence2291]

Things change and things stay the same. The game is the game. Always!

[@ginofrancejr555]

Excellent review the wire is one of my favorite shows of all time and marlo is one if TVs all time great villians

[@kwon7378]

We just need a wire KZbin upload of all the street stuff

[@lilitbeglarian7942]

Marlo was terrifying. Everytime he was on screen i was on the edge of my seat. Great character.

[@Smile-ni9nc]

Marlo is the product of the system Avon and Stringer built. All these disposal young men and women they sent into the grinder learned nothing but brutal violence and self-advancement

[@laprincessa9787]

I don't know about that. He was way off the rails. We see other people around the same environment and he just sticks out like a monster.

[@franksaint84]

​@laprincessa9787 did you not see what avon crew did to Omar's boy toy?that ish was brutal now just imagine all the shit coming up that Marlo seen growing up on the same side.. even shot Gant in the head a every day worker...

[@jamesthomison4356]

Avon and stringer didn't build the system, they just were part of it

[@eeb3994]

Stringer and Avon did not build this system🤦🏽‍♂️ in fact they are all victims of the system

[@Smile-ni9nc]

@@eeb3994 Of course they are all victims of the larger system, however that doesn't mean individual choices don't have consequences and meaning. For example, Herc's actions have forever changed Randy's life for the worse. That this happened in the larger context of the education and criminal justice system failing Randy at every turn does not excuse Herc's individual responsibility or lessen his personal and specific impact on Randy's life. Stringer and Avon built their empire in a way that specifically made Marlo who he was. The casual violence against women and outsiders, the nepotism and glorification of the past that made it impossible for anyone without connections to climb high in the hierarchy, the 0 tolerance of any mistake or failing of their (lower ranked) members. Marlo is the logical conclusion of a pawn who made to the other side of this board and became a king himself.

[@bathcat3759]

I always viewed Marlo as the streets personified in its purest form

[@tochiRTA]

that's a whole fact

[@v.m.m.7729]

Wee Bay had the heart, real street dudes are more like him… he is a walking “streets”

[@timothyslaughter476]

Yeah, the wire had a way of showing the old school style g's against the up and coming yung guns....more vicious, ruthless, no rules apply.....very true, very realistic. But I still say my favorite scene in cinema history....not just the wire....in the history of movies and television...was the scene where Wallace gets killed by Bodie n poot....m jordans acting there is the best I've ever seen. The stark set of the abandoned white bedroom with the rigged light bulb. Bodie's scared shitless....poot being the real hammer......too fucking good.....best scene ever!!!

[@stephensmith7327]

​​@@timothyslaughter476I don't think it's a generational thing, I think he's the worst guy at the right time. He came up at a a perfect point of instability, the Barksdales where destabilizing which allowed him to escape Mob Justice, and the police where also reduced in funding which allowed him to escape the rule of law. It's also why his run as king is short lived. The barksdales had a decade, he had a couple years.

[@sambo416]

​@@v.m.m.7729wee bay represents what the streets used to be like. Marlo represents the mentality of the young niggas

[@Okkotsu86275]

My favorite character in the show. Jaime Hector doesn't get enough praise for his portrayal, he's acting was top rank and brought so much nuance to the character. Marlo Stanfield is one of the best characters in the whole series who deserves a lot more recognition than he gets. His name is his name!!!!

[@nekrataali]

What I love about the character is how little emotion he displays, except when he's giving his "My name is my name!" speech. But Jamie Hector doesn't come off as flat or one dimensional. He perfectly conveys a cold, ruthless, predatory demeanor. I think the only other person who has done this well in such a portrayal is Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in "No Country for Old Men."

[@matthiasblum6555]

Marlo is a great character, but was in the end all about climbing the ladder, playing the game and winning, not about his name or being vain.

[@danielebowman]

I thought Marlo wasn't close to one of the best characters. The actor did well, but he always seemed to have so much plot armor on him and din'tdo a greta job of his passions or motivations. I know they tried to do the ironic poetic justice ending of him being unremembered, but like several threads in seaosn 5 (by far the weakest season, don't get me started on what they did with McNulty or Freeman), it didn't work. It would have worked more for Barksdale to come out of prison to realise no one remembered him on the streets. Avon was the character who most lived for the street.

[@AhmadAli-uk3sh]

​@@danielebowmanif you say so

[@ngkngk875]

It was annoying when he did the 50 cent talking without moving your jaw thing but other than that it was good.

[@Dopecheetah]

I hated Marlo from the jump. I just hated everything about him. And what he did to Prop Joe was just uncalled for. Prop Joe was so so dope. I wanted Marlo dead so bad. It’s testament to actor Jamie Hector, he killed that role.

[@BigA678]

Prop Joe told Omar to steal the shipment and Joe bought it back. Then Joe sold it to the co-op for double. Tru definition of 🐍

[@annnonymous1]

Prop Joe killed his role too cause y’all forgot about all the foul stuff he thought he got away with Prop Joe set up Marlo to be robbed by Omar then used that to make Marlo join the Co Op hoping that he could control him Then he sent Omar to rob his shipment of of heroin & sold it back to everyone for a way higher price Marlo was the only dealer in the Co Op smart enough to see Prop Joe for who he really was & done what he had to do

[@AdaptiveApeHybrid]

His conceited drive reminded me of some people from my past and I feel the same lol. Absolutely despicable character and amazing performance

[@Skinny431]

Prop Joe played and used Marlo. Don't forget that.

[@sirjamar]

Prop Joe got Marlo robbed of hundreds of thousands of dollars, and his ring. And then got the entire co-op robbed by Omar again. I get that we liked Prop Joe, but how could we all be in so much agreement that Stringer deserved his death and not Prop Joe? He was just as big a snake as String. And maybe when Cheese told Marlo where Prop Joe lived, he also told him about the Omar stuff? Doesn’t that justify Marlo killing him?

[@MrFreedomforyou]

The fact that videos are still being made 20 years after it ended shows to how great it was

[@cs3473]

Marlo's fate to an extent is worse than death: He's anonymous. His last scene where the kids don't know who he is. I imagine if he had gone down in a blaze of glory, people would remember him.

[@BigA678]

“Worse than death: he’s anonymous and living and up $10 million” 😂 what a negative way to view a W

[@cs3473]

@@BigA678 True, but remember what he said in jail when he found out that Omar was trash talking him, "My Name is My Name!". And if he carried that attitude before he was in jail, I don't think that is going to change after he gets out of jail.

[@quint4573]

​@@BigA678 Marlo doesn't view that as a W , he wanted to be King of the streets not in a suit where most people won't respect him

[@aarongoldstein8472]

@@BigA678 hes wants his name to ring out on the corner

[@BigA678]

@@aarongoldstein8472 I’m just viewing it as a street nigga’s perspective you view it from a tv show fan perspective and thats ok

[@s.j.t6006]

I was quite young when The Wire came out. I recently found out about it and looked into it and I can proudly say, this is one of the greatest shows to air on TV. Ever. Rest in Peace Michael K Williams

[@JediBunny]

Sadly we also lost Lance Reddick this year. Michael K. Williams was amazing. Such a talented actor - my favourite character in the series.

[@SeemsLogical]

This year was also the 10 year anniversary Robert Chew's passing who played Prop Joe. Robert Chew was Baltimore born and bred, and did double duty instructing many of the child actors on how to talk the Baltimore accent. Also Sonja Sohn (Kima Greggs) is in prison for felony possession of cocaine. That happened in 2019 and I imagine she's still in prison today.

[@brett444]

One of???

[@s.j.t6006]

@@brett444 that is what I wrote, yes.

[@TrevyTrev-andTheFunkyPets]

Me too. I watched a few episodes and it wasn’t like The Sopranos. Yrs later gave it another shot and was the greatest TV experience next To Breaking Bad for me.

[@Dm34421]

Marlo represents the new school ways of drug dealing while Avon represents the old school ways of dealing. Marlo didn’t care to negotiate or build relationships with any of his rivals.

[@jamaalmoses8821]

I would say Prop Joe and The Greeks are old school..Avon was a mix of the old and new.

[@zero1188]

@@lugrisa nah stringer way dont work. Its for civilized people. Marlo did a mixture of stringer and avon way. He hid the bodies so there was no bodies to bring police. Which is stringer way. But he still klled like avon.

[@tanman49]

Yup is just murder and take what he wants

[@tanman49]

@@zero1188 yes police goes harder for actual bodies in the streets than missing people. Murders and bodies are what scares the community. Missing folks they just say how sad. If the person is a menace they say good.

[@rjhikups78]

@@jamaalmoses8821 buy for a dollar sell for 2. Later with all that Bs..... - Prop Joe

[@JediBunny]

HECK YES! These videos are what got me to watch The Take in the first place! Marlo was truly one of the best villains I’ve seen portrayed on screen! Incredibly well-written and just a stellar performance as well.

[@nekrataali]

Yeah I think I subbed to this channel after looking for analysis on The Wire after my third re-watch! It's been a long time since we've had any Wire content, and I'm all here for it. Marlo just made the show absolutely insane. We're first introduced to Stringer and Avon who are absolutely ruthless and evil. Then we get the Greeks who throw people away like trash that's on a whole other level. Like the video said, it just gets worse when Marlo finally shows up.

[@timothyo718]

Yeah I originally started watching the Take for their analysis on GoT, Breaking Bad, and the Sopranos. For a few years they seemed to over focus on stuff like Gone Girl, The Royals, and MeToo themes. Appreciate them going back to the classics!

[@tennyoceres]

sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee-it still one of the best shows i've ever watched.

[@raymondsims7042]

For me it is the best🤝

[@BigA678]

8:28 perfectly said. Marlo was a hybrid of Avon’s ego and Stringer’s business acumen

[@mikelomez9313]

I always saw Marlo as a mythical villain. A complete product of the drug business. No feelings, only driven by money and power.

[@AdaptiveApeHybrid]

How are those drives not dictated by feelings

[@mikelomez9313]

@@AdaptiveApeHybrid I mean everything he did was a calculated move to put him at the top of the drug business. I didn't really see any emotional aspects to it.

[@iwanttocomplain]

@@mikelomez9313 he bottles his emotions up. He’s not even interested in money, it’s almost like he want revenge. He ends up punishing everyone involved in the game and only reducing everyone’s capacity to improve their living conditions. As if to set the city on fire out of spite as if there’s nothing worth saving.

[@mikelomez9313]

@@iwanttocomplain interesting perspective

[@iwanttocomplain]

@@mikelomez9313 he’s like the most depressing and joyless character ever created.

[@harrisonpincombe884]

Really interesting how similar Bodie talking to McNulty about snitching on Marlo, but not on his boys on the corner, and Frank Sabotka talking to the detail in season 2 about not snitching on any union people. It's s a nice way of showing how important solidarity is to working people. A glimmer (and only a glimmer) of hope in the face of the game's relentless demands that everyone competes and only looks out for themselves, I think

[@seangallagher1947]

For all the bullshit Marlo pulled throughout the last few seasons I was so happy to see his lukewarm ending. No one respects him, no one remembers him, his name meant nothing but Omar and Avon’s do.

[@DblTap317]

I will never agree with this. Marlo WON! He's free, keeps his money and can live happily ever after should he choose. Avon is broke, hustling money from Marlo of all people and stuck in prison. Fuck that name shit and street shit it DOESN'T MATTER life isn't a video game these people don't respawn...... Except Marlo he respawns and immediately takes a corner and oh yea, he kept his pride and dignity.

[@seangallagher1947]

@@DblTap317 Marlo is the punk at the end, with nothing, as far as that life is concerned. He went soft. He’s a phony.

[@DblTap317]

@@seangallagher1947 "that life" isn't a real thing bruh. Life is life. It's a marathon not a sprint right

[@Laidback718]

​@jamesb6396 he won but still lost because he wanted people to remember his name.

[@DblTap317]

@@Laidback718 Oh he did plenty to be remembered by the handful of people that would care before they die or go to prison. He still lives on to do more memorable things. He won in every sense of the word.

[@srstudios6374]

Avon was never "yearning for his name to be known as king on the streets". It's actually quite the opposite, Avon went to great lengths to ensure his name was clean, cops couldnt even properly ID him for quite some time

[@danielebowman]

Not quite. AVon was most yearing for the streets. What he did was very clever in ensuring he was unknown and unconnected to the cops. He was well known on the streets andlived for the street life.

[@manniking233]

Avon wanted to avoid the mainstream at all cost. But the streets? He wanted his name to be known there by any means necessary, even with the risk attached to it.

[@equusquaggaquagga536]

Marlo's ending is the same as Anton from No Country for Old Men They both get away but they both get injured indicating that their luck is running out

[@crazychase98]

Similar characters for sure and a correct take. And it ironic or for telling when he said "even when you win you can still lose"

[@budwyzer77]

Michael was going to hunt Marlo down and kill him within a month of his release.

[@sirshulertha93rdking96]

Like Avon said, "The game is always going to have a Marlo"

[@CPaulCourtney]

I'll say it whenever the opportunity arises. Season 4 of The Wire is perfection. Absolute perfection.

[@larae6885]

Absolutely agree!! The story of DuQwan ( Dookie) broke my heart 😢

[@wambokodavid7109]

@@larae6885 ahh that boy😭. Thanks again for reminding me how life in the wire could get waayy darker than expected

[@larae6885]

@@wambokodavid7109 dude it CRUSHED me seeing how he ended up

[@carmellebandibas]

YES!!!!!! season 4 was too excellent, I was expecting so much in season 5. Sadly, I was underwhelmed.

[@wildcatste]

Feels like it’s been years since y’all did a video on the wire (probably during the screen prism days). So glad to see y’all pick up this analysis on this show!

[@YOUR_neighbor25]

Marlo was the most EVIL person on the show but got to live out stringers dreams, and leave the game with millions …sad part that’s how it be in real life

[@KingIrvXL]

Just luck

[@manniking233]

​@@KingIrvXLWasn't luck. Dude got a vicious lawyer because of how much power he raked up in that short period of time.

[@AdaptiveApeHybrid]

You know his ass would die violently in the street if the show continued. He was addicted.

[@budwyzer77]

@@AdaptiveApeHybrid Michael was going to kill him ASAP.

[@AdaptiveApeHybrid]

@budwyzer77 I mean doesn't something like that make sense? Honestly I think Michael killing Marlo or Chris would have made the last season waaaaaay better

[@ashtonturner2862]

Still the best TV drama of all time.

[@raymondsims7042]

No doubt

[@yearo77]

It’s clear of Sopranos or anything. So dope!

[@MidnightAT]

soulless efficiency is always terrifying.

[@MackeyDeez]

People like Marlo are going to learn that there is a good reason to have rules in place. If the game is chaotic then only the meanest, the most cold hearted, and the most ruthless will come out on top. However, by rule there will always be someone who's willing to go the extra mile, be more savage, and cause more destruction to get to the top. If that means coming after you then that's how chaos works. People who don't care for the rules like Marlo fail to see that they're going to get old and comfortable; eventually will get slipping. The Italian mob knew a hundred years ago that no one is going to last long in the game if there isn't no organization. This is why they started a commission to settle disputes between the crime families.

[@lightworker2956]

Agreed. In reality "zero rules, zero morality, I Marlo demand absolute loyalty yet give none back" doesn't work in the medium term. Eventually that just leads to street warfare or to someone murdering him. Marlo's not immune to bullets and there's no such thing as the streets being 100% dominated and monopolized by one man.

[@dr-mp4rp]

The Mexican cartels are a good example. No rules or any sense of morality in that game. Mfs are tortured, flayed, dismembered, etc. etc. Only gets worse

[@hopoff9968]

I disagree. You're right for the most part but you got one key detail wrong about Marlo. He'll never get old and comfortable because he doesn't care about that. In that scene with Vincent where he's trying to convince him to back off and how he'll end up dead he says he doesn't care as long as he dies on top. That's the scary thing about people like Marlo. He isn't scared of dieing, he's scared of living as a nobody.

[@madgavin7568]

Which is why I think the Co-op under Slim Charles is in good hands. The only threat to them is potentially Michael as he matures and hones his craft. If Marlo tries to get back into the game, he's either a dead man or a jailed man.

[@MackeyDeez]

​@hopoff9968 Everyone get old and eventually get comfortable.

[@annejohnson5875]

I absolutely love the Wire, it is one of my all time favorite shows and I watch it all the time. Marlo was definitely frightening with his desire to kill over every little perceived slight, but I like to think that he became the next Stringer Bell and eventually met the same fate.

[@manniking233]

That's the scary part. Marlo is so ruthless and has no personal attachments. He has also killed all traitors. All those apparent weaknesses got Stringer killed. Marlo lacks none of those and already entered the level of society Stringer wanted. Marlo is thus harder to kill on both counts: too isolated, too powerful. If Marlo got back in the game, the only thing that could end him was the police... And they only failed once and can't come with the same viciousness as before anymore. Marlo is proof morality doesn't matter, once you pursue only power and totally disregard it. That's the part that truly scares me.

[@dafyddwilliams2158]

@@manniking233nah i think Michael no one give him the respect off snoop off so many more and would definitely be one step ahead of marlo and he was after Michael anyway in my eyes michael became like the second omar in the end brandishing the double barrel and all michael would’ve deaded him easy

[@manniking233]

@@dafyddwilliams2158 That WOULD make sense. Only Michael, who could easily find him. So, yeah.

[@manniking233]

@@dafyddwilliams2158 That WOULD make sense. Only Michael, who could easily find him. So, yeah. Only one problem, though. Marlo is a killer himself. He could easily kill Michael if it came down to a showdown. It wouldn't be a foregone conclusion.

[@dafyddwilliams2158]

@@manniking233 nah michael smoked more people and was smarter he would've just popped up and think of it when i came to marlo snoop and chris are the real killers who taught michael so michael would get there first everytime

[@yunga8305]

Im glad this show still gets the recognition it deserves it had such a deep massage and was so gritty i dont think they’ll ever make a show this good again.

[@TK-ky5kh]

This show was loaded with incredible performances. I wouldn't even know where to start. But yes, out of all that it was Marlo and Omar that stood out the most to me. Those dudes were just different.

[@magickfire81]

Expected the take on Succession finale...got a piece on a show that's even better, even after 20 years. Not dissapointed at all

[@sambizz6500]

I saw the wire for the first time during lockdown and thought it was amazing. So thanks for doing this take on Marlo and I'll check out the others. Good to see The Take going back to tv and movie breakdowns.

[@fox_e_crow3276]

What makes Marlo “worse” than Avon, exactly? The fact that his organization was responsible for 22 deaths instead of 8? That Marlo thought it was more prudent to kill Prop Joe than to ignore him? I think the hard truth is essentially what Poot argued in S4. The degrees separating Avon from Marlo are mostly negligible, in the last analysis. Stringer felt he *had* to kill Wallace, so he had it done. Marlo, likewise, does what he does because he feels he *has* to do it. But let us not forget that the most brutally cruel and vicious act we see committed in the entire series is a direct result of Avon’s orders. I’m talking, of course, about the torture and death of Omar’s boyfriend, Brandon, in S1. Almost all of Marlo’s kills, by contrast, are clean and painless (Butchie *is* briefly tortured by Chris and Snoop, but it doesn’t come close to what Brandon received at the hands of the Barksdale crew). “The game doesn’t change. Just got fiercer.” I forget who says that in the show, but I think the quote sums up how “the show” wants us to think about Marlo. He doesn’t represent a qualitative shift in the nature of the game. He is just the best at playing it - the best of his generation. He’s the perfect apex predator for his environment. But it’s the same old hunt. Reading that logic into Marlo’s final moments makes sense. It’s just back to square one. Building a power-base, one corner at a time.

[@IAMASAVAGECREATORREACTS]

Marlo will never be respected but his was feared in his time! Avon, Slim Charles , Omar and Brother Mazone were respected !

[@louielyons9365]

Do Avon, or an episode on "the philosophy of Wallace vs bodie" or "the evolution of bodie" or bunnie colvin and daniels the "good" cop or d'angelo or an episode on randy, Michael, dukie and namond or "carver vs herc"

[@mDelto]

I’m so glad you guys are doing The Wire again. I throughly enjoyed your take on Stringer and Omar, and I’m very much looking forward to seeing who you analyze next.

[@aryankaushik93]

Please don't use dramatic background music. It's cheesy

[@tariqpittman]

Marlo is my favorite character in The Wire. It used to be Avon but Marlo’s presence and sheer force of darkness is unlike anything I’ve seen in fiction that wasn’t someone in a comic book. He’s a force of nature that can’t be reasoned or understood with normal thought.

[@BigA678]

Vincent could reason with him

[@rasulsamad5860]

​@BigA678 who is that

[@madgavin7568]

I don't understand how that can him a favourite character of yours though. I get why he's such an evil presence on the screen that puts you on the edge of your seat, but if anything it just makes him all the more despicable. We all wanted to see Marlo get his comeuppance at the end.

[@JayCity10]

His end was fitting for his character. It's a fate worse than death.

[@XavienBowers]

27 bodies in fucking vacants

[@Tomorrison28]

In 2023 we're living in the age of Marlo. The streets are much more sociopathic than before. No one and nothing is off limits.

[@luisdelvalle3783]

Im so excited for you guys to breakdown the succession finale

[@Mick-kellyPierre-nk8qz]

Marlo in the end realized he wore a paper crown, nobody knew who he was after he was dethroned by the law.

[@smartyhardy8924]

Finally! I loved your videos on Stringer Bell and Jimmy Mcnulty, but after a while I lost all hope that you'll make new ones.

[@jamesdamian5699]

Remember when the take used to talk and analyze movies and tv shows.

[@ZeldaKid5000]

Literally finished this series two hours ago, and now this is posted. Think it's a sign from the heavens I should begin my first rewatch

[@nekrataali]

The most jealous you can ever be is when you find someone who gets to watch The Wire for the first time. The second most jealous you can ever be is when someone gets to watch it for their second time 😭🤣😂 It's amazing how much the show transforms on subsequent re-watches. I hated the second season the first time I watched the show. By my third re-watch, I think season 2 is the best after 1 and 4. Season 5 isn't as good on those re-watches. But The Wire's worst seasons and episodes are still better than anything else that's ever aired and remains the GOAT.

[@bobbysealejunior6590]

@@nekrataalivery good take bro.

[@nubianfx]

Just here to reiterate how The Wire is still in the top 3 best tv shows of all time and doesnt get anywhere enough credit for it. Its in fact SO good that anytime i think of rewatching it i give myself pause. Because this show devastated me.. literally drained the life out of me ha. But the proof is in the pudding... i cannot remember a showing having THIS many stand out, nuanced and iconic characters both protagonist and antagonists.

[@raymondsims7042]

It’s not just “top three” mate it’s the best show ever made🤷‍♂️no show is even in the same class.

[@Roccofan]

3:21 I still think about that security guard. That was one of the most senseless, unnecessary, disgusting displays of power and heartlessness I’ve witnessed on tv. I guess that was the point.

[@sickembrace9531]

Marlo ain't shit without Chris. Chris is the real demon in the game

[@nunyabusiness3516]

The WORST villians are the politicians and people would live comfortably by villifying these desperate people.

[@espectrodelayautja6320]

Marlo is the truth that people hate. Specifically weak people who live in delusion. It’s so many Marlo’s out there that reeked havoc and are still free and living. He was a great character. Not everyone dies. Not everyone spends the rest of their life in prison. It’s plenty that walked out like Marlo. It’s sick. But he’s a dope character.

[@serene1275]

True because he definitely been studying the real art of war and used it to his advantage.

[@petermj1098]

⁠@@serene1275​​⁠​⁠​​⁠​⁠Marlo is an insecure man who killed anyone who made him insecure. His tough side is a facade. Marlo won but Avon beat him. Marlo ended up be a man on the streets while Avon became a legend on the streets. Marlo chased for respect while respect chased for Avon.

[@jasmineopara3476]

Can you do a breakdown on D’Angelo Barksdale?

[@benyijohnson7925]

Glad to see the Take back on the Wire

[@kayleighdriessen]

You guys once made a video talking about the witch trope, can you guys also make a video about the origins of mermaids and how they tend to be portrayed in media and why? Seems fitting since The Little Mermaid 2023 came out ot long ago

[@lukecywalker]

"There is always going to be a Marlo, man. No Marlo No Game." -Avon Barksdale

[@HonestAdonis2]

That's why I come here man.... Marlo is the love child of Avon and Stringer?😮 Diabolically accurate

[@natemyers4946]

Marlo was the living embodiment of organized crime: ruthless, cunning and without remorse.

[@TheStop]

I think yall wrong about Avon and Marlo, Avon played Marlo in the jail negotiation.

[@King-wl6zj]

With String, Marlo, Avon, Prop Joe the wire has the best antagonists I tv history

[@suburbannegro411]

The Take is doing the Wire?? That's not a combination of words i'd thought would ever run through my mind.

[@raymondsims7042]

They’ve done more videos about the wire lad all are very good check them out

[@jordanharris868]

They did The Wire vids back when they were still Screenprism dawg

[@tanman49]

That’s the besttttttt break down of a character I have ever seen. And you touched the right points. I was like I hope she discusses the Omar conflict. Because of you I am going to do a rewatch😂. Keep the videos coming. Let me see if you got one on Omar.

[@maxwellchute6114]

This is great analysis, great video. The Wire is one of those works that is just timeless

[@astrocreep9060]

Never understood the reverence for Marlo, it was superbly written and acted, but he wasn't anywhere close to the man he thought he was. Joe handed him everything, and Chris made most of the street level decisions. Marlo's only skill was ego

[@AdaptiveApeHybrid]

You need ego to bring people to heel

[@jamesallard7223]

The game is the game. The only way to win is not to play.

[@johnsaysthings]

I liked the first thumbnail better.

[@bballer2695]

The Take going back to their ScreenPrism vibes ?!…we love to see it! 👏🏾 Hopefully this is the trend and not a blip.

[@JayJoe626]

I don’t know if Marlo was “worse” than Avon and Stringer. Avon and stringer are already on the top removed from most of the violence but they are JUST as ruthless as Marlo. They had Boadie and Poot killed their childhood friend, they had a witness killed for just testifying and worst of all Avon has a bunch of prisoners overdose and die. His own nephew was on drugs and if his nephew had used, he could have ODed as well

[@nilotinner2377]

i miss this types of videos

[@samfilmkid]

So y'finally decided to get back to your "Wire" videos, huh? Only took five years!

[@airyshaggy83]

"He even killed his best friend Wallace." That made me chuckle. If anything, Poot and Wallace were best friends. Wallace wasn't calling Bodie from out in the country. He was calling Poot. Bodie didn't sleep under the same roof as Wallace and the kids. Poot did. Wallace wasn't hanging with Bodie when they spotted Brandon. He was hanging with Poot.

[@airyshaggy83]

Bodie did throw a 40 at Wallace for being a kid, though. I guess that does make them best friends. Nah, never mind.

[@stevenlovejoy6838]

"The game the same, just got more fierce" -Slim Charles Perfectly describes Marlo.

[@satevo462]

Marlo was the trump of The Wire. Made the game worse, and never even suffered the consequences. But EVEYBODY else did.

[@loopyalc1490]

definitely my favorite character in a TV show. Completely ruthless.

[@AliceSnowstorm]

More wire content finally!!!!

[@lucg5099]

To me there is also another message. Marlo is so heartless that he's finally not able to keep an organization because he's unpredictable and he can't keep his alliances. However, Avon has still been playing from prison, he's only there for having guns and Will be free when the east side has no Prop Jo and Marlo has already Lost his power, he's got connection to the Greeks and Avon is a person that has got people to trust him and gets to have loyal people to him ("I am what you may consider.. an authority figure"). He's won the game. Remember when he describes Stringer as a man without a country "not hard enough for the streets, and maybe not smart enough for the business men"... But Avon knows his place ("I'm just a gángster I suppose"). He's the one character that's hard enough, strategic but can also cares about his people; he's the only one who's perfectly adapted to the hard reality where he's been raised. So, after all, the King doesnt move so much... but the King stay the king.

[@nekrataali]

I think Avon also downplays his own intelligence, almost like he's read and re-read _The Art of War._ "Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak." He pretends he's "just a gangster and I want my corners," but really he understands the instability of Marlo is bad for business. He's literally off the street while in prison, but he very much is still running the streets because he's got the connect. Stringer vastly underestimates Avon's capabilities because Stringer is the type to spend hours pouring over _Wealth of Nations,_ instead of material relevant to his profession in crime.

[@lucg5099]

@@nekrataali exactly! I once read a comment on the rooftop scene saying that the story that Avon tells about Stringer stealing a badmington Game and getting them trouble while Avon said "but we have no yard!" Was a paralell to their attitude: Stringer wanting to belong to a higher class and Avon knowing exactly where they are. Also there are all the chess metaphores: Bodies shooting diagonally like a pawn when he's killed by Michael, Who makes the Knight move; Stringer running straight and diagonal lines, like the Queen, when he's killed by two pawns shooting to him diagonally; and Avon winning the Game when he's literally put in a place where he can barely move, like the king Honestly i think it's impossible to make any show better than The Wire

[@thenewongoam2486]

Wow, The Wire is back

[@waynereid9471]

After snowfall it’s good to remember That the Wire ended well

[@Teddy-zr8yv]

Dude, snowfall ending was great

[@Ree-h2f]

Marlo is GOOD try remember that Stringer bodie and wallace were the real enemies

[@yeaitiss]

Love your wire takes! any chance you make the Bunny Colvin video essay? :)

[@kelceyallen433]

Poot said. The world going 1way, the people another. REA

[@jjjjj11278]

correct me if I'm wrong but the kids in the last two seasons follow the path of the main players from the first seasons the boy who killed omar would most likely be the future marlo due to him being younger and ruthless its like the cycle continues.

[@eralec]

Marlo is the most dangerous because he is in many ways the most primitive scum

[@paisan8766]

Game’s the same, just got more fierce

[@kylielakoduk2158]

Yay more The Wire content!

[@blackkev3695]

Marlo is my favorite character in the whole series

[@richardjefferies3420]

Poot kills Wallace, not Bodie who freezes. The end of Marlos arc where he is knifed reflects that though he is wearing the Crown he’s vulnerable and won’t keep it (as he says in an earlier episode ‘at least he wore the Crown’) No Chris nor Snoop by his side. He can be cut up by a child / street corner thug

[@floijd]

12:39 This reaaaaaally isn't how you pronounce Dostoevsky.

[@therewasnothingthere3157]

ok goober

[@bryanbelcher5785]

I can see marlo dying like albert Anastasia from murder inc.

[@colorsmith5569]

This was a great one. Please more wire one’s

[@sole__doubt]

Its not things CAN get worse its that they WILL get worse.

[@jordanloux3883]

Marlo is Miles Bron with the humor stripped away.

[@Akron162]

Avon still had some redeeming qualities: his concern and care for his family, his respect for his associates and underlings, he even helps out Cutty with his gym and asks nothing in return. Marlo is a complete different animal. He has no cares or attachments. He doesnt even seem to be interested in money, the nominal end of the Game. He has no friends, not even interest in women. When he has sex it seems more like some sort of biological need being fulfilled, like pissing. His only aim is to be feared, the highest expression of power, and to that end he is willing to do anything. A truly terrifying villain.

[@ferazvansen1592]

The take is back!!!!

[@quincycannon9350]

Marlo- you want it to be one way, but it’s other way

[@joshnlevinson]

Great analysis. Marlo was absolutely terrifying, and the actor who played him was excellent in the role. Love The Wire.

[@dman375]

Kinda parallels presidential politics today.

[@Tha-s3r]

Chris Hedges put it the best he says about mania for hope will causes us not to see what is the problem in front of us is that we think everything will be solved

[@TrulyMadlyShallowly]

All the players are guilty of creating Marlo. Every one of them is eroding rules in their own way to get ahead - thereby opening the door to a player that is worse. Stringer, he breaks the Westside's Sunday rule and Avon's Family rule. Omar kills again and breaks his promise to Bunk. And let's not even start about where we began: against every form of human decency, with the torture of Brandon.

[@Rewindwithrekenya]

My favorite character of the series.

[@JavedKhan-jw3fi]

yall a couple years late with this one screenprism